Method and apparatus for shaping thermoplastic sheet material



w. E. MElssNER 2,608,720

5 Sheets-Sheet 1 f RRQ Nw Sept. 2, 1952 METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SHAPING THERMOPLASTIC SHEET MATERIAL Filed Nov. 5, 1949 WILL/AM E. ME/SSNER BY HTTORNE Y 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 W. E. MElSSN ER mN. WT mw NNN METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SHAPING THERMOPLASTIC SHEET MATERIAL Illini Sept. 2, 1952 Filed Nov. 5, 1949 INVENTOR.

WILL/AM E. MEISSNER BY "TORNEV SPf 2, 1952 w. E. MEls'sNER 2,608,720

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SHAPING THERMOPLASTIC SHEET MATERIAL Filed Nov. 5, 1949 sheets-sheet s INVENTOIL Y w/L/AM E. ME/ss/VER HTI ORNEY Patented Sept. 2, 1952 METHODAND APPARATUS FOR SHAPING THERMOPLASTIC SHEET MATERIAL William E. Meissner, East 0range, N. J.

Application November 5, 1949, Serial No. 125,708

Claims.

. This invention relates in general to loW pressure thermal molding and laminating of thermoplastic materials. Y Heretofore, in the manufacture of a shaped article from thermoplastic materials it has been necessary, in most cases, to convert the thermoplastic material to the liquid state and inject it in a mold under high pressure, or to granulate the thermoplastic material and subject the granules to compression molding at high pressures and high temperature to cause the material to flow into the mold cavity. These prior processes require expensive heavy equipment, high temperatures and very high pressures. Further, it is necessary in these prior methods to use a long time cycle for molding and for cooling before the mold is. opened.n All these complications increase the vcost and decrease the production rate of plastic articles made according to prior procedures.

`It is known to use an inorganic material such as sanclas a mold for casting metals, plaster of Paris, and other materials. However, in the prior uses of sand molds the mold is never heated to the point where the sand liquiiies, and in any. case, thermoplastic organic materials cannot be molded in sand molds because if the mold is raised above the temperature of the'thermoplastic material, the latter will seep into the surface of the mold and the finished product will be embedded in it. Further, if thesand mold is heated to the temperature atv which the sand melts, the organic material being molded will be decomposed atsuch high temperature. It is also known to use ordinary waxes as molds for the cold molding of plaster of Paris and other self-setting materials which require no heating. All waxes, even highly refined parafin wax (M. P. 64-71 C.), soften and melt below the melting point of thermoplastic resins and cellulose derivatives, and therefore, wax molds are impracticable for the thermal molding of such organic thermoplastic materials because the mold cannot be raised to the softening point ofthe organic plastic without causing `the wax mold to melt first.v

It is the general object of the present invention to provide a'processzfor the low pressure molding and laminating of the thermoplastic materials which willrbe characterized by high speeds at low pressures and shall permit any degree of undercutting or detail while allowing the greatest freedoml in the separation of the molded article from the mold.

Another object of the invention is to provide a frangible, temporary mold which permits thermal molding and laminating of thermoplastic cellulose derivatives and resins at temperatures above their'thermal softening'points.

` Another object of the invention is `to provide an apparatus for the molding and laminating of thermoplastic cellulose derivatives and resins in a simple and economical manner at atmospheric pressures. Y

Other objects of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.

According to the present invention there is provided a process for shaping thermoplastic materials comprising confining a pellicle formed of a thermoplastic materialselected from the class consisting of thermoplastic cellulose derivatives and thermoplastic resins against a mold of a solid salt having a melting point higher than the melting point of thev thermoplastic material to be molded, preferably at least C. above such melting point, heating the thermoplastic pellicle, while in contact with the mold, to a temperature substantially in excess 'of its melting point, thereafter cooling -the article while so confined, and separating the molded article from the mold.

In the preferred embodiment of this invention the salt used in the moldhas a melting V'point terial to melt. Ordinary heat-sealing of two'- from 25 C. to 50 C. above the meltingpoint of the thermoplastic material to be molded.4 Fur-- ther, during the molding the temperature of the thermoplastic material being moldedl is raised to a temperature substantially above its softening'point, i. e., suilicientto-cause-the malayers of thermoplastic material usually-results in a seam in which the two layers are still discernible. but in the present process'the fusion of contiguous surfaces is so complete that in the nal product the fused area is homogenous. l For a more complete understanding of the nature and objects of the invention referenceshould be had to the accompanying drawing in whichV Figure 1 represents a diagrammatical iiow diagram illustrating one embodiment of the" process and of the mold. Figure-2 is across-` section of a portion' of the molded article in contact with one embodiment of the mold." Figre`3 is a 'perspective view in sidev elevation of a-sec'ond embodiment of the mold; 'andFigure '4 is a cross-section of a third embodiment oflthe mold. Figure 5 is a side elevation partly inlsectionY of one embodiment of Y an apparatus for* continuously laminating a thermoplastic'masection of the tubing produced by the use of the apparatus of Figure 8.

The process of the invention is applicable for molding and laminating thermoplastic organic non-metallic materials selected from the class consisting ofthermoplastic cellulose derivatives and thermoplastic resins. The expression thermoplastic resins is intended to include not only resins Which are permanently thermoplastic but also thermosetting resins While they are in the thermoplastic state. The following examples Will be given by Way of illustration but not -by Way of limiting the invention: l

` f Softening Points, C.

Cellulose Derivativesie. g. Esters and Ethers:

Y cellulose nitrate cellulose nnnfofn cellulose acetate-butyrate...

A .ethyl cellulose l benzyl cellulose Thermoplastic Resins:

polyvinylcarbazolepolyvinylformal polyvinylacetal. polyvinylbutyral .chlorinated rubber tetrailuoroethylene polymer..

.sulfur dioxide oleiine resins T okol vinylidine chloride resins polydiclilorstyrene nylon resins methylmethacrylateresins polystyrene copolymer of vinyl acetate-vinyl cblor rubber (vulcanizing) polyethylene vvsilicone resins polyester resins (methyl ester oi abietic acid) Thermosetting Resins (in thermoplastic state):

.phenol-furfural phenol-formaldehyde .melamine-formaldehyde alkyd resins allyl resins (allyl alcohol polymers) lIt is to be understood that it is not suicient for homogeneous fusion of these thermoplastic materials to merely raise Athem to the softening points shown in the above table. In the practice of this invention the molding of these materials is carried out under such conditions that the temperature is raised, during molding, at least 25 above the melting point of the particular.. plastic material being molded. For example, in molding a copolymer of vinyl chloride and vinyl acetate having a softening point of 100i C. to.110C., the mold is heated to a temperature of 280 C. so that the vinyl copolymeris actually melted for a brief interval of time during the molding cycle. By actually melting the plastic the molding time can be cut to a few seconds.

The thermoplastic material is initially, that is prior to molding, in the form of a preformed pellicle, such for example as films, bands, strips, seamless tubing, and thin-Walled articles.

To the thermoplastic material there may be added, either before, during or after its fabrication intoa pellicle, a suitable compatible plasticizer, softening agents, coloring materials, and decorative eifect materials, and in the case of thermosetting resins a suitable curing catalyst.

The thermoplastic material may be combined with-alreinforcing member such, for example, as a rigid material of ceramics or metal or of a flexible member such as a layer, tube vor strand of metal, plastic wood, textile fabric, paper, felt, and the like. In the preferred embodiment these reinforcements become part of the molded article during'the process'of molding but in some cases they maybe separated from the molded article after molding.

21 For molding the thermoplastic material in the present invention there is selected an inorganic salt having a melting point higher than the melting point of the thermoplastic material which is to be molded. v,Since most of. the thermoplastic materials soften ",suiiiciently to fuseforlmelt at temperatures between 90 C. to 350 C., the salts employed are preferably those having a melting point in the range of 100 C. to 650 C. A sec- 'ondcharacteristic of this invention is that the thermoplastic material is heated while in contact with the salt and the salt being solid or being caused to turn solid While the thermoplastic 'material is deformable. The salt mass determines the final shape of the thermoplastic pellicle and the thermoplastic material is then cooled while in contact with the shaping sajlt mass. Therefore, .the inorganic salts used for molding'the thermoplasticmaterial are salts'selected from a class having melting points "from C; up to 650 C., such for example Tasthose shown in the following Table 1.

Following the principles of this invention -a salt having .the proper temperature 'maybe selected from the abovetable. Intermediate temperatures may be obtained by mixing various proportions 4of loW 'melting and high melting salts.V Mixtures 'are preferred becausethey produce fine grain crystallinestructures in' thes'olid mold and thus reproduce` details'vvell.

In anoIW preferred embodiment thereis .employed a mixture of inorganicsalts, for .example a mixture of sodiumnitrite, sodium nitrate'and potassium nitrate. Such'a mixtureis characterized by having a relatively low melting point, which melting point canbe varied over a Wide range from i280 to 633 by varying-the' relative'A proportions of each ofthe 4salts in the 'mixtiire as Will'be shown from the folloWingtableiZ. ,Y

Table 2;-The freezing: pom'ts'of NaNOz-NaNOa--KNOa 'mixtures Sucli'a mixture is also characterized by high heat-transfer rate, by high thermal stability in the range from the melting point to 633 C., and by lack of corrosive action on steel at these temperatures, and by Very low viscosity. It is to be understood,.however, -that the invention is not limited to vthe specific salts described since these are given by way of example only.

By way of illustrating but not by way of limiting the invention, there will now be describedA amethod of molding a exible reinforced tube by means of a mandrel mold. Referring to Figure 1, vthere is first produced a masterV mold I which is preferably of the divided type shown so that if necessary under-cutting may be employed. This mold is preferably formed of a non-corrosive metal so that it may be used repeatedly for producing the temporary frangible salt molds. Such a mold is shown at stage A in the flow diagram. At stage B the metalmold II) is closed, and there is introduced into the interior a hollow tube 9 of metal having a diameter smaller than the mold cavity. Thereafter, the molten salt from the container II is poured between the inner tube 9 and the mold. Then the mold is allowed to cool until the salt solidiiies. The mold I0 is then opened and the salt mold I2 removed. At stage C the thermoplastic material and the salt mold are assembled in proper relationship. For making one embodiment of a flexible tubing from thermoplastic materials e. g.,

vinyl resin, the vinyl resin is cut into long strips I3 and I3-a. Referring to the section shown in,

Figure 2, two of these strips are wound spirally in over-lapping relationship around the cylindrical salt mold I2. If the salt mold has been provided with ridges I4 or other surface irregularities, the spirally wound strips I3 and I3-a maybe made to conform substantially to such surface irregularities by-tightly winding over the strips a plurality of resilient strands I5, such for example as wire orplastic strands or monoflls of materials having a melting point higher than the plastic to be molded, such as polyethylene, nylon, vinyon monols. The composite plastic tubing with its reinforcing strands I5 is held under pressure on the mold by an outer tight bindl ing formed by spirally vwinding over the spirally wound tube strips I6, ISa of non-thermoplastic material such as metal foil, cellophane, etc. The binding also serves to make the enclosed plastic conform to the general shape of the mold and to hold it in place when the plastic melts. In stage D the assembled plastic tube and mold is subjected preferably to a preheating to bring the temperature ofthe thermoplastic material to a point near its melting point. For this purpose the mold and plastic assembly may be passed,V

through a heating oven I'I heated by suitable conventional means. In the molding stage E the mold carrying the windings of plastic material is immersed in a bath I8 of a heat-exchange liquid, the bath also owing inside the tube 9. The heat-exchange liquid can be either a molten mass of inorganic salts melting at temperatures preferably below the melting point of the saltl mold I2, or ,fDowtherm' heat exchange fluids, or silicone heat-exchange fluids, mineral oil, and the like, also metallic heat-exchange fluids such as molten lead, molten mercury, and the like. Because ofthe high heat-exchange rate and the fact that the thermoplastic material has been preheated, it is only necessary for themold I2 to remain in the heat-exchange liquid for a very shortinterval ofptime, for example from 1,0 sec?- solidifying of the plastic material.

onds toone minute.' Under such` conditions, the' thermoplastic strips I3 and I3-a are rapidly heated to their melting point whereupon overlap.- ping contiguous surfaces are autogenously welded or flow together and also iiow around the enclosed strands I5. Thus, the strands lvbecome. permanently embedded in and form an integral pari'l of the molded tube. The binding strip I6 serves to hold the plastic strips in place, but the weight-of the heat exchange fiuidA pressing against the outside of the plastic tubing, While this thermoplastic tube is in a molten st ate,.

causes the plastic materialto flow and conform to every surface characteristic of the mold I2 as will be seen by referring to the cross-sectionv I-Il in Figure l.

The heat-exchange iiuid heats the` inner tube-` material assumes a substantially rigid and perf marient form which conforms to the surface characteristic of the mold. After cooling, the plastic tubing is separated from the mold. kThis may be accomplished in several ways. In the process illustrated in Figure l, a simplemethodVv is to subject the tubing to sharp blows where` upon the salt mold cracks into particles P which are shaken from the tubing. When the salt moldy is hollow and relatively thin-walled, it maybe cracked by twisting the tubing. Alternatively,l a separation may be effected by dissolving the salt in a suitable solvent such as water, and when dissolving is employed, the solvent may also beused for cooling so that stages F and G may be combined. Y A

At stage H there is shown an enlarged section? of the nished tubing in which'it should be noted that the strands I5 are embedded in the wall of. the tubing while the twolayers of plastic film have fused together around the wires. structure between the strands is permanent because it has been formed by the melting By way of further illustration, assumingthat the strips I3 and I3-a are formed of eight mil polyvinyl resin lms and the tubing has al diamfl eter of three inches, a satisfactory molding may` be eifected by immersing the mold carrying the plastic strips in a molten salt bath at 188fC. forY thirty seconds. f l

To repeat the molding cycle it is merely necessary to produceanother salt mold I2 in the master metallic mold I!) and repeat the process steps above described."

Instead of using the salt mold as a rrian'drelfas`v shown in Figure l, the invention may utilize la' cavity mold such as the embodiment shown in` Figure 3. A salt mold ZIJ having a hollowcavity is formed from a master mold in a 'conventional manner. rfyit is decided to utilizev the external surface of the mold as the molding surfacegthe thermoplastic material in the form'- of afllm4 2`IE is appliedto the outer surface 22. The .meldl carrying the lmis then enclosed yin .the "thine" walled master metallicv mold 23 which was fused in forming the salt mold 20. Thereafter, a heat-.l

.exchange liquid 24, preferably a molten salt having a temperature'slightly higher than the salt mold,l is introduced in the moldcavitygWhere-f.

upon', the waus 25 or thesait nidid'graddauyjiait n The arch g and.

butisimultaneouslyfheatnthe plastic film 2l to -a temperature above its` meltingpoint. whereupon this plastic owsandconforms to theshape of thesalt' mold.V After a shorttime, 10-60 seconds,

the-entireA-assembly is inverted, the molten salt is'fpoured outof the cavity, the master moldV is opened, and the-vessel removed and cooled. By squeezing or twisting the plastic vessel thus formed'the layer` of salt adhering to the inner wallsfthereofmay be broken upand shaken out or alternatively; it may be` dissolved out with a` suitable solvent.

lln- Fig-urelthere` is shown another embodi-Y ment-'of the mold: in which the vplastic material is `molded onthe inner surface of a cavity salt mold 28 having a constriction 29 intermediate its ends.v Inthis embodiment the pellicle of Vplastic nmte'r-ialisirstl preformed into a bag or tubing 30"'lflaving 4a closedbottom 3 l. The plastic bag Iis introduced into the'mold 28 and a heat-exchange liquid fis introduced intoA the interior 33-of the bag Stil-whereupon the bag-is immediately heated'and forced into` contact with the salt mold 2 8and conforms to the-shape thereof. Simultaneously,

The processv canalso-be carried out in aV continuousmanner. By way, of illustration but notY byway-ofli'mitation, two embodiments ofthe continuous process will `now be described.

Forlaminating aY plurality of plies, at leastone of which is a thermoplastic organic material, there lmay beusedan apparatus such as that shown diagrammatically in Figure 5. A layer of fabric 4U is enclosed between two lms 4I and 4|V-a ofjplasticized cellulose-acetate by bringing.

them together over the tension roll 421 and then around adrum 43 heated by Y'conventional means. The surface of the drulnis provided with circumierential grooves ofthe configuration shown in Figure 7.. From'the drum .the composite ma-v terial'M passesover a plate 44ithe surface .of`

which is. providedwith grooves corresponding to those onY the drum 43.. The material then passesk around the tension. rolls V45,` 4 5-a and. 45-b andis.

thenV wound upon the roll`46. Due to the tenV` sionexertedon the material between the roll H and the roll 45, the compositematerial 5i Willbe caused `to conform substantially to the conguration ofthe grooves. As the composite materialpasses around the drum 43 it is preheatedzin'thearc P and then passesintocontact i' with-molten salt.contained in a trough 4l. The moltenjsalt coating rapidly heats the composite material quickly up to the softening pointofjthe cellulose acetate. As the sheet material advances.

furtheraround the drum it is coated a second 1f 'time with molten saltfrom .the trough 47-awhich causes theriilms of cellulose acetate yto fuse together through the interstices of the, fabric. Then thefmaterialis suddenlychilled in thecooling-'zoneRiwhjerethe saltcoating is .solidiied by I i means, of cold air flowing through aperturesin thebase--of aliood 48; From the drum ,the sheet material 5i passesover the grooved plate .44 dur-V ngwliich passage it is further cooledby coldy air. nowingthrough the hoods 49' and 5D. Referring to Figure 7, ityshould be noted that theglaminated sheet; materia-1.5i is supported on the'groovecl plate V44 and carries on its-surfaces.' thickilayer-.f of: solid salt.; 52. As a result 'of the heating of thecellulose acetate layersl While they-are in a.; corrugated state and by.causing-.theisalt to solidify,- while-the layers are thus corrugated, the celine; lose acetate films Miand 4l-asoften sufiioientlyI to" fuse through the interstices-of the enclosed fabriclayer 40. VThus the corrugated configurav tionA is rendered permanentbecause theglami nated material .scooled in contact with the solid: salt: mold 52. As the compositev materiali] moves-'over the tensionzrol1s-45a and 45b,xthe2 material is rapidly reversed in direction Y thus; causing the brittleY salt' .layer f* 52 lto be .broken up; whereuponit maybe brushedoif'the surface by; the-rotating brush 573, thesalt particlesxfalllng; into the containerf54.

The moltensa-ltis Lsupplied to the troughs and A'L-a from a heated reservoir 55 through the pipe; The troughs 4l' and41-a are'jacketed and heated by'means ofthe steam pipes 5:1: That: side of the troughs'next thedrum 43 is formed-10i.' a flexible Wall"58 extending: the fulllength ofthe trough and substantially the 'full length of' the drum 43. This flexible lip may be formed of thin: material rubber or any other material which does not-melt at the temperature of the moltensalt. Theledge `ofthe -iiexible wall which -contactsrtlicf grooved drum is provided with avcorrespondingcorrugatededge so that it conforms snug'lyttoV the groovedl surfaceV of the sheet materials pass-- ing thereunder.` The excess salt overflows through` lthe -pipe 59 and passes-into thelower'trough4l of-similar constructions, and from th trough :the overiiow passes through the pipe 60 and is re-v circulated to the reservoir'` bymeans of theY centrifugal pump 81;' If desired, a band fof sheet metal, cellophane, or other non-thermoplastic material'may be drawn tightly over the com-'- posite sheet materials 4i), 4l, and 4l-b so that suchl nonthermoplastic materials Vare disposed on: the outside so that during the melting of 2i the thermoplasticcellulose acetate layers thesey layers are firmly conned between such overlying band and the ygrooveln surface of thedrum, such band b'eingwound up separately from the laminated sheet material 5l as it passes overthev To produce tubing by a continuous process there mayv loe` used apparatusshown diagrammatically, in Figure 8in which a garden hose is producedfrom two layers of copolymer vinyl resin and an enclosed helix of wire. From the heated reservoir 65 molten salt 66j under airpressureisA forced through the insulatedn pipe 61. upward? through a forming mandrel whichis provided` adjacent its leasewith ,a tube forming guide 69g i. Av copolymer Avinyljresin film is passed from.. the

roll'l, under the tension rollJi, under the tube.. former Saso that it is formed Aintoa tube around the mandrel 6 8', theedges'of .the vinyl film being, abutting. The tubethus formed is drawn upward' by'thegpair of 'rolls l2 vertically positioned over. the-tube forming mandrel 68'.. Simultaneously', a wire 13 is Wound fromV thespool 14" into ahelix l5' enclosing .theuvinyl tube [6,...Also from the, slI0ol11 a striDj 'it of @polymer vinyliilm is wound in aspiral A around the .tight .wire helix but in the reversedirection Aand iinally astripl-li of. cellophane, metal, or other y.non-,thermoplastio material ispwoundfrom thespool 8l inl a spiral. around the, compositeltube ina direction reverse` to the Winding ofthe strip 18; vIt is to be under-r stood that the wire, theplastic strip 1-8, and the cellophane 80'V are wound about the plastic tube 16 by-rotating the spools about the mandrel so that there is no rotation of the tube 'IB on the mandrel.

Asthe composite tube T passes off vthe end of the mandrel 68, it is simultaneously filled with a mass of the molten salt which immediately solidifies on'the interior walls to form a hollow tube of solid -salt 82. As'the molten saltinside the tube Tis under pressure due to the height of the molten salt in the reservoir 65, the salt tube 82 will bel formed against the walls of the tube T under pressure. In this process a salt is employed which has a melting pointfrom 25 C. to 50 C. above the softening point of thevinyl film so that even after the salt solidies in the interior of the tube T theY temperature ofthe solid salt tube 82 will be sucient to melt the vinyl films and cause themfto fuse together and -thus enclose the wire helix as shown in Figure 9. The composite tube T with 'its enclosed salt tube 82 then passes through a cooling chamber 84 whereupon the plastic films are cooled and caused to set in contact with the enclosed salt tube which serves as a mold. As the composite tubes pass through the pressure roll 12 the enclosed tube of salt 82 will be broken up.` To remove the salt the finished tubing or hose is cut into 50 foot lengths and the salt shaken out or washed out by a stream` of water forced through the hose.

It is to be understood that the. process and the apparatus under the invention are capable of many variations within the scope of the invention which is dened by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The method of producing a molded thermoplastic article which comprises the steps of superimposing one pellicle of thermoplastic material upon another, subjecting the resulting assembly of pellicles While so arranged to contact with a fused salt having a higher melting point than the pellicles, cooling and shaping the fused salt While in contact with the arranged pellicles to solidify the salt and simultaneously fuse the thermoplastic material into a unitary shaped article, thereafter cooling the assembled salt and shaped thermoplastic article, and removing the salt from the molded thermoplastic article.

2. The method of producing a molded thermoplastic material which comprises the steps of continuously passing a plurality o-f strips of thermoplastic material into position wherein the edges of the strips are in contact, passing the strips while thus arranged into contact with a fused salt having a higher melting point than the thermoplastic material, cooling and shaping the fused salt while in contact with the arranged stripsto solidify the salt and simultaneously fuse the thermoplastic material into a unitary shaped article, thereafter cooling the assembled salt and shaped thermoplastic article and removing the salt from the molded thermoplastic article.

' 3. A method of producing a thermoplastic tubular article which comprises the steps of continuously shaping a pellicle of thermoplastic material into a tube wherein the edges of the pellicle `are brought into contact, supporting the exterior of the tube thus produced with a nonthermoplastic outer cover and continuously forcing molten salt having a melting point above the softening point of said thermoplastic material into said tube to .fuse the edges of said pellicle together into a seamless form, cooling the thermoplastic material and salt and removing the Salt core therefrom.

4. A method of vproducing a thermoplastic tubular article which comprises the steps of continuously shaping a pellicle of thermoplastic material into a tube wherein the edges ofthe pellicle are brought into contact, wrapping a reinforcing member in the form of a helical spiral about the tube thus formed, applying a second layer of thermoplastic material about the reinforcing member, supporting the exterior ofthe assemblyl thus produced with a non-thermoplastic outer cover, and continuously forcing molten salt having a melting point above the softening point of said thermoplastic material into saidtube to fuse the vengaging portions. of said pellicles together into a seamless form in which said'reinforcing member is imbedded, cooling the thermoplastic material and salt andremoving'the salt core therefrom. 5. A method of producing'` a thermoplastictubular article which comprises the steps of continuously vshaping a pellicle of thermoplastic' material into. a helical spiral so that the edges 'of adjacent turns are brought into contact presenting a tubular construction, Wrapping about said tubular 'construction a reinforcing member inthe form of a helical spiral, providing a second over. lapping thermoplastic wrapping about` the resultingassembly, further applying an outer supporting cover about the second thermoplasticwrapping by continuously wrapping a non-'thermoplastic material in an overlapping helical Winding about the second thermoplastic winding, continuously `forcing molten salt having a melting point above the softening point of saidthermoplastic material into. said tubular construction to fuse engaging portions of said pellicles. .together into a seamless tube inwhich said reinforcing member is imbedded, cooling the thermoplastic material and salt, and removing the salt core therefrom.

6. Apparatus for forming tubes from thermoplastic materials selected from the class consisting of thermoplastic cellulose derivatives and thermoplastic resins, comprising in combination a tubular forming member, means for shaping a pellicle of thermoplastic material into a tube about said forming member with edges of said pellicle in contact, means positioned adjacent said forming member for surrounding the tube thus formed with a non-thermoplastic supporting outer cover, means for forcing molten salt having a melting point above the softening point of said thermoplastic material through said tubular forming member and into the interior of said thermoplastic tube to form a core which cooperates with said outer cover to conne and soften the thermoplastic material until the edges of the pellicle are sealed together to form a seamless tube, cooling means positioned beyond said forming member, and means for continuously moving said thermoplastic material and salt from said forming member through said cooling means.

'2. Apparatus for forming tubes from thermoplastic materials selected from the class consisting of thermoplastic cellulose derivatives and thermoplastic resins, comprising in combination a tubular forming member, means for shaping a pellicle of thermoplastic material into a tube about said forming member with edges of the pellicle in Contact, means adjacent said forming member for applying a reinforcing material to the exterior of the tube thus formed, means for applying additional thermoplastic material over said reinforcing material, means positioned adjacent said forming member for surrounding the tube thus formed with a non-thermoplastic supporting outer cover; means for 'forcingmolten salt havingfa melting pointe` abovertheV softening point ofssaidgthermoplastic material through said tubular-forming member into :the interionof said thermoplastic tube to formi a= corewhich cooperates \iu'1,h;saidt outer cover to conlne and. soften the thermoplastic lmaterial and'cause the edges of the peliicle-V-to besealedtogether toiorm a seamless tube,4 coolingc'means positioned beyond said forming=member, and means for continuously moving said `:tl'i'ermoplastio material and: salt from said formingmembersand'through said cooling means.

8:'Thef method of. producing a., thermoplastic article which comprises the` steps of shaping sheetedV thermoplastic .material into the form of axniarticleA to; be` produced with edgesof the Sheetei'lIriaterial arranged in contact; supporting the sheeted material on one side with-a non-thermoplastic material;V applying tothe opposite side of: the: sheetedxl material aV molten salt having-l a melting point above the softening point ofthe thermoplasticfmaterial, cooling said'molten salt toas tempera-ture below` its melting point vwhileY in contact-" Withsaid; thermoplastic material whereby saidzsfalt iszcrystallized;` and.y hardened. into a supporting: form in contanti with said i thermoplastic 'materialandfthe edges. of saidmaterial are fused together: intol a; continuous integral article, and removing-the.salt and non-thermoplastic material; fro'mfithe resulting article.

The', method of;` producing; a. thermoplastic article which comprisesthe. stepsY of shaping sheeted; thermoplasticmateral intorthe form of anzalticleltoibe produced, with edges of the sheeted material; arranged; in contact, supporting the sheetedi material on one side with. a: non-thermoplastczmaterial; applying to. the opposite side of the sheeted rnateriala` molten-,salthavingca melt?.

arranged in contact; removingi theipellicleewhlethus; arranged; from; the form-, aplcrlyingV` molten saltgzhaving a, melting` point; alcove, thel softening pontofitheithermoplasticmaterialjoonasurface of the pellicle, cooling said salt toa'l temperaturebelow'its-melting pointiwherebythesalt is;crys: tallized and hardened into, a supporting form whilefingcontact with saidgpellicle :ando-thegedges: of the-p ellicle; are: fused togethenand removing the crystallized salt :fromthe: article.A

WILLIliMlE:r MEISSNERL REFERENCES CITEDv The`v following referencesz areL of record: in the file of this :patent:

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